The Jersey City Independent"

A much-needed 15,000 square feet of green space is coming to a mostly industrial area west of Journal Square, thanks to a high-end condo development.

CANCOlofts announced this week that construction has begun on the new park, located across the street from its main building on Dey Street. In the inverse of the famed Joni Mitchell song, the park will replace a parking lot there, and it is slated to be finished and opened to the public by the end of October.

After more than a year of discussion and revision, the city’s redevelopment plan for Journal Square was approved by the City Council at its Wednesday meeting.

- Hiring a Lobbyist to Fight Pipeline: The City Council will vote Wednesday on whether or not to hire a lobbyist in hopes of blocking Spectra Energy’s plans to run a natural gas pipeline through Jersey City.
- Local Family Planning Centers Brace for State Cuts: Family planning clinics in Hudson County, including Horizon Health [...]

As City Hall continues to consider potential changes to Jersey City’s food truck ordinance, about a dozen vendors have formed a coalition to push for substantive reform, with assistance from the Street Vendor Project, a nonprofit that works on behalf of New York City’s street vendors.

- Montgomery Gardens’ Future: Jersey City Housing Authority executive director Maria Maio confirmed yesterday that Montgomery Gardens is the next Jersey City public housing project to get the HOPE VI treatment, with most of the 434-unit high-rise complex slated to be leveled and will be replaced by a seniors building and 60 to 90 other [...]

Although Jersey City’s City Council last week narrowly approved issuing about $7.6 million in bonds to acquire the contested 6th Street Embankment, developer Steve Hyman says he has no interest in selling the city the land. Instead, he says he will continue fighting in court for his right to develop the property.

Wednesday’s City Council meeting was both long and contentious. Marked by several council members changing their votes, as well as dozens of residents addressing the council, the nearly four-hour meeting saw votes on 11 first reading ordinances, six second reads and 46 resolutions. The full council was present for the meeting, along with about 100 [...]

- Shakeup at Liberty Humane: The entire board of directors of Liberty Humane Society resigned last night, alleging mismanagement of finances and citing a loss of control over the Liberty Humane Society’s decisions. Animal advocates had been upset by the board’s vote last month to cap the number of dogs housed at the shelter at [...]

- Cops Enforcing Traffic Laws: The Jersey City Police Department says it is cracking down on aggressive driving across the city, having issued over 250 summonses for various traffic offenses, including 125 tickets to drivers who failed to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks between April 21 and June 30.
- The Battle for the County Republican [...]

- Fulop Opposes Proposed Food Truck Law Changes: As we reported in May, the longstanding issue of what to do about the city’s law governing food trucks seems to finally be inching towards a conclusion. Two of the main revisions outlined in the draft ordinance we told you about back then — extending the length [...]